Computer components ports

The Six Stages of Interacting with Clients

1. Set the Stage 2. Be Attentive 3. Be Polite 4. Handle Problems 5. Don't Snoop 6. Finish the Job

Professionalism

As a representative as yourself and/or the organization you are affiliated you are expected to carry yourself in a respectful manner.

D-shell connector

Connector with more pins or holes on the top side than the bottom so that a cable inserts in only one direction. Ex. Parallel, serial, and video ports. Most are legacy ports now.

USB Type C

new USB port that is a reversible plug connector, operates using USB 3.0, being used by Mac and ChromeBook. It also provides power, video output as well as data transfer.

Bluetooth

wireless technology designed to create small wireless networks pre-configured to do specific jobs, but not meant to replace full function networks or Wi-Fi. Used on a lot of mobile devices.

KVM Switch

A device that in its traditional configuration as a local KVM switch connects a single keyboard, video display, and mouse to two or more computer systems, allowing the user to switch control from one computer to another.

Docking Station

A more advanced and more expensive alternative to a port replicator. In addition to the ports normally found on a port replicator, a docking station may include full-size expansion slots and drives. (6)

RJ-11

A phone line connection or port found on modems, telephones, and house phone outlets.

Audio ports, also called sound ports

A system usually has three or more round audio ports, also called sound ports, for a microphone,audio in, audio out, and stereo audio out. If you have one audio cable to connect to a speaker or ear buds, plug it into the lime green sound port in the middle of the three ports

S/PDIF (Sony-Philips Digital Interface) sound port

Connects to an external home theater audio system, providing digital audio output and the best signal quality

DisplayPort

DisplayPort transmits digital video and audio (not analog transmissions) and is slowly replacing VGA and DVI ports on personal computers.

Infrared

Electromagnetic radiation with wavelengths longer than visible light but shorter than radio waves

RAM (random access memory)

Memory modules on the motherboard containing microchips used to temporarily hold data and programs while the CPU processes both. Information in RaM is lost when the PC is turned off.

video memory

Memory used by the video controller. The memory might be contained on a video card or be part of system memory. When part of system memory, the memory is dedicated by Windows to video.

Integrated Motherboard

Motherboard that contains certain functions built-in like video, sound, NIC and other ports and features normally reserved for expansion slots

Network port, also called an Ethernet port, or an RJ-45 port

Network port, also called an Ethernet port, or an RJ-45 port, is used by a network cable to connect to the wired network. Fast Ethernet ports run at 100 Mbps (megabits per second), and Gigabit Ethernet runs at 1,000 Mbps or 1 Gbps (gigabit per second). A megabit is one million bits and a gigabit is one billion bits. A bit is a binary value of one or zero

IEEE1394 port

See FireWire port.

antistatic wrist strap

See ground bracelet.

Ethernet port

See network port.

firmware

Software that is permanently stored in a chip. The BIOS on a motherboard is an example of firmware.

antistatic bags

Static shielding bags that new computer components are shipped in.

tower case

The largest type of personal computer case. Tower cases stand vertically and can be as high as two feet tall. They have more drive bays and are a good choice for computer users who anticipate making significant upgrades.

motherboard

The main board in the computer, also called the system board. The CPU, ROM chips, DIMMs, RIMMs, and interface cards are plugged into the motherboard.

hard drive

The main secondary storage device of a computer. Two technologies are currently used by hard drives: magnetic and solid state. also called hard disk drive (HDD).

Thunderbolt port

Transmits both video and data on the same port and cable. The port is shaped the same as the DisplayPort and is compatible with DisplayPort devices.

DVI (Digital Video Interface) port

Transmits digital or analog video. Three types of DVI ports exist, which you learn about in Chapter 8.

HDMI (High-Defi nition Multimedia Interface) port

Transmits digital video and audio (not analog transmissions) and is often used to connect to home theater equipment.

Flash Memory

Used for fast and easily transferable information storage in digital devices such as mobile phones, media players and cameras. Flash memory is known as a solid state storage device meaning there are no moving parts. Everything is electronic instead of mechanical and so it is ideal for mobile devices

Port Replicator

Usually offered by the laptop manufacturer, it provides additional ports such as serial or parallel in order to connect desktop peripherals which could include external display or printers

Radio Frequency (RF)

Works in the 27MHz or 2.4GHz frequency range. Longer distances are supported than with infrared.

VGA (Video Graphics array) port

a 15-pin analog video port popular for many years.

DB-15 port

a 15-pin female port that transmits analog video. Also known as VGA.

S-Video port

a 4-pin or 7-pin round video port that sends two signals over the cable, one for color and the other for brightness, and is used by some highend TVs and video equipment.

power supply

a box inside the computer case that receives power and converts it to provide power to the motherboard and other installed devices. Power supplies provide 3.3, 5, and 12 volts DC. also called a power supply unit (PSU).

expansion card

a circuit board inserted into a slot on the motherboard to enhance the capability of the computer.

desktop case

a computer case that lies flat and sometimes serves double-duty as a monitor stand.

HDMI (High Definition Multimedia Interface) port

a digital audio and video interface standard currently used on televisions and other home theater equipment and expected to ultimately replace DVI.

floppy disk drive (FDD)

a drive that can hold either a 5½ inch or 3¼ inch floppy disk. also called floppy drive.

heat sink

a piece of metal, with cooling fins, that can be attached to or mounted on an integrated chip (such as the CPU) to dissipate heat.

S/PDIF (Sony Philips Digital Interface) sound port

a port that connects to an external home theater audio system, providing digital audio output and the nest signal quality.

RJ-45

a port that looks like a large phone jack and is used by twisted-pair cable to connect to a wired network adapter or other hardware device. RJ stands for registered jack.

Thunderbolt

a port that transmits both video and data on the same port and cable. The port is shaped the same as the DisplayPort and is compatible with DisplayPort devices.

DVI (Digital Video Interface) port

a port that transmits digital or analog video.

DisplayPort

a port that transmits digital video and audio (not analog transmissions) and is slowly replacing VGa and DVI ports on personal computers.

network port

a port used by a network cable to connect to the wired network.

FireWire port

a port used for high-speed multimedia devices such as camcorders. also called an IEEE 1394 port.

modem port

a port used to connect dial-up phone lines to computers.

PS/2 port

a round 6-pin port used by a keyboard or mouse.

external SaTa (eSaTa)

a standard for external drives based on SaTa that uses a special external shielded SaTa cable up to 2 meters long. eSaTa is up to six times faster than USB or FireWire.

USB (Universal Serial Bus) port

a type of port designed to make installation and configuration of I/O devices easy, providing room for as many as 127 devices daisy-chained together.

central processing unit (CPU)

also called a microprocessor or processor. The component where almost all processing of data and instructions takes place. The CPU receives data input, processes information, and executes instructions.

parallel ATA (PATA)

an older IDE cabling method that uses a 40-pin flat or round data cable or an 80-conductor cable and a 40-pin IDE connector. See also serial aTa.

parallel port

an outdated female 25-pin port on a computer that transmitted data in parallel, 8 bits at a time, and was usually used with a printer. The names for parallel ports are LPT1 and LPT2. Parallel ports have been replaced by USB ports.

electrostatic discharge (ESD)

another name for static electricity, which can damage chips and destroy motherboards, even though it might not be felt or seen with the naked eye.

A VGA (Video Graphics Array) port, also called a DB-15 port

is a 15-pin female port that transmits analog video. (Analog means a continuous signal with infinite variations as compared to digital, which is a series of binary values—1s and 0s.) All older monitors use this port.

S-Video port

is a 4-pin or 7-pin round video port sometimes used to connect to a television. The 7-pin port is shown on the left. The 4-pin port is missing the extra pins in the middle and is the more common type.

Older serial port, sometimes called a DB9 port

is a 9-pin male port used on older computers. It has been mostly replaced by USB ports.

USB (Universal Serial Bus) port (1.0 & 2.0 )

is a multipurpose I/O port used by many different devices, including printers, mice, keyboards, scanners, external hard drives, and fl ash drives. Some USB ports are faster than others. Hi-Speed USB 2.0 is faster than regular USB, and

USB (Universal Serial Bus) port (3.0 )

is a multipurpose I/O port used by many different devices, including printers, mice, keyboards, scanners, external hard drives, and fl ash drives. This version is Super-Speed.

PS/2 port, also called a mini-DIN port

is a round 6-pin port used by a keyboard or mouse. The ports look alike but are not interchangeable. On a PC, the purple port is for the keyboard, and the green port is for the mouse. Newer computers use USB ports for the keyboard and mouse rather than the older PS/2 ports.

parallel port

is a type of interface found on computers (personal and otherwise) for connecting peripherals. In computing, a parallel port is a parallel communication physical interface. It is also known as a printer port or DB25.

IEEE 1394

is an interface standard for a serial bus for high-speed communications and isochronous real-time data transfer. It was developed in early 1990s by Apple, who called it FireWire.

external SATA (eSATA) port

is used by an external hard drive using the eSATA interface . eSATA is faster than FireWire.

FireWire port (also called an IEEE1394 port, pronounced "I-triple-E 1394 port")

is used for high-speed multimedia devices such as digital camcorders.